Silicon-based polymers have been known and used for several decades. Prominent among these are polymers based on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), commonly called silicones. PDMS-based polymers are useful in many different applications based on their low glass transition and high thermal stability. Such polymers, however, exhibit relatively weak mechanical properties. A number of techniques have been employed in an effort to improve the mechanical performance of these polymers. For example, adding silica-based fillers within the polymer matrix has been shown to enhance the overall mechanical properties of the material. As another example, carbon segments have been added to the PDMS-based polymers to create silicon/carbon copolymers. These silicon/carbon-based copolymers display several desirable material properties not observed in polymers based on carbon or silicon alone. Such properties include high thermal stability, good electrical resistance, low surface tension, good release and lubrication properties, high hydrophobicity, low glass transition, and low toxicity for the natural environment.
Although much progress has been made in this field, the need for new carbon/silicon polymers that exhibit improved physical properties remains. In particular, new carbon/silicon polymers that exhibit both high elasticity and good tensile strength would be useful in many different applications.